KANDAHAR, Afghanistan – Afghan officials say a shootout between Afghan and Pakistani border guards has killed one Afghan policeman in a remote southern region where the border between the two countries is poorly marked.

In the Afghan province of Kandahar, police spokesman Zia Durrani said the skirmish started shortly after dawn on Thursday and lasted for about two hours.

Durrani says the two sides engaged in sporadic shooting using rifles and firing rockets across the boundary.

Kandahar government spokesman Dawakhan Minapal says the fighting in remote Maroof district was sparked by an attempt by the Pakistani border police to construct an outpost on the Afghan side of the border.